Here’s an advertising trend that comes up every now and then: putting glamorous apparel on models made to look sad/greasy/hostile. I’m stumped by this. Why would it help sell an outfit to show that outfit on a person who looks miserable? There must be a method to this madness, or so many designers wouldn’t be doing it. But what? What’s the thinking?

To get my head around the idea, I tried to envision how each of these ads came to be, by imagining a conversation among these characters:

Ad Exec: MikePhotographer: SteveModels: Zelda, Daphne, Marcia, Lisette, Brenda, Chloe and Babs
(* None of these are the real people’s names, obviously. They’re just people I’m making up in my head.)

* * *

Mike: So Zelda, what we’re going for here is warmth of coat, coldness of heart, OK?